"My ultimate goal is to one day be driving a pair of Acoustic Zen Crescendo or Vandersteen Quattro speakers. A 200wpc + consideration would be preferred but I’m flexible on that too lol."
If you want to do this right, you should plan the system out now, even if you can't afford everything all at once. The Vandersteen as a possible choice caught my eye because its my favorite speaker and I have some experience with them. For solid state, I feel Ayre is the best match for Vandersteen. You may want to consider an Ayre V-5, and then maybe a K-5 preamp after that. But just getting a V-5 now and using your NAD as a preamp, you won't recognize your system. You'll think you got new speakers, as well. That's how much of a difference it will make. But you should do some listening first, to see if you like the combo.
If you want to do this right, you should plan the system out now, even if you can't afford everything all at once. The Vandersteen as a possible choice caught my eye because its my favorite speaker and I have some experience with them. For solid state, I feel Ayre is the best match for Vandersteen. You may want to consider an Ayre V-5, and then maybe a K-5 preamp after that. But just getting a V-5 now and using your NAD as a preamp, you won't recognize your system. You'll think you got new speakers, as well. That's how much of a difference it will make. But you should do some listening first, to see if you like the combo.